Bishop of Cork condemns recent violence, threatens ex-communication
Cork, 14 December 1920 - The Bishop of Cork, Daniel Cohalan, has issued a decree, published in the Cork Examiner today, stating that any Roman Catholic who organises or takes part in an ambush or kidnapping within his diocese will be excommunicated.
In a hard-hitting sermon delivered in the cathedral on 12 December, Bishop Cohalan was explicit in his denunciation of those engaged in recent disorders.
‘Murder is murder and arson is arson whether committed by agents of the government or members of the Volunteer organisation, and it is the duty of a bishop to denounce murder and arson from whatever source they come. In face of the destruction of the city, it was the duty of everyone to condemn, and try to put a stop to, outrage, murder, kidnapping and ambushes, with which, unfortunately, they had become too familiar.’
People wandering around the still-smoking ruins of Cork city, recently destroyed by fires (Image: Illustrated London News, 18 December 1920)
The bishop raised the issues of attacks on policemen and, aside from the moral issues involved, asked what had been ‘gained politically by the murder of policemen?’
‘Some republicans say that districts have been delivered from British sway when the policemen were murdered and barracks burned. It is a narrow view. Who will now mention that a district has been delivered from British rule by the murder of RIC and the burning of the barracks? No – the killing of the RIC was murder, and the burning of the barracks the destruction of Irish property. Reprisals began there after the murder of Lord Mayor Mac Curtain, and now it looked like a devil’s competition between some members of the IRA and agents of the Crown in feats of murder and arson.’
Cork city and county have been the focus of much of the recent unrest and they have experienced a serious upsurge in violence. On the night of 11 December, the centre of Cork city was destroyed by fire, presumed to have been started by crown forces, and in late November, 16 members of the Auxiliaries were killed in an ambush at Kilmichael, near Macroom.
The bodies of these Auxiliaries were transported from Cork to London via Cobh. Thousands lined the route and business was suspended as the funeral procession travelled through Cork, the coffins of the dead Auxiliaries covered in union jacks and flowers. They were then boarded onto the SS Thistle at Custom House Quay, where the Last Post was sounded as the boat departed. The coffins were then transferred to the destroyer Undine at Cobh.
As a result of the ambush in Kilmichael, the Auxiliary Division of the RIC in Macroom has issued a notice prohibiting men from appearing in public with their hands in their pockets. The notice states that any male caught infringing the new rule will be ‘shot at sight’.
[Editor's note: This is an article from Century Ireland, a fortnightly online newspaper, written from the perspective of a journalist 100 years ago, based on news reports of the time.]
